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Baudelaire ------------------------------------------- king of the gramatically incorrect, last of the two finger typist------------------------the truth, uncut funk, da bomb..HOME OF THE SIX MINUTE BLOG POST STR8 FROM BRAINCELL TO CYBERVILLE

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Last
week the US Census Bureau released its annual poverty report. The findings are
startling and in many ways in contrast to what have been proffered by the Obama
Administration as it pertains to economic improvement and growth in the US
economy. The new figures show that things are getting worse for American
families.

Findings
indicate that those classified by the government as poor remained at record
highs in 2011 while the gap between rich and poor increased. One in five
American children was poor in 2011 and the poverty rate of young adults age
25-34 living with their parents, based on their own income alone, was 43.7
percent – a reduction of fallen by about 12 percent after you adjust for
inflation since the year 2000. In addition, the median household income
declined to $50,054 in 2011 -- a 1.5 percent decline from the previous year,
not to mention that the median household income has now fallen for 4 years in a
row.

These
results are in concert with other studies. The National Employment Law Project
recently reported that 58 percent of new jobs during the Great Recession were
low-wage, paying between $7.69 and $13.83. Moreover, the Gini coefficient,
which is how social scientist and economist measure the level of social
inequality in a country, has grown at the fastest rate on records dating back
to 1993. During 2010, 42 percent of all single mothers in the United States
were on food stamps.

The
same is consistent for older Americans.In 1984, the median net worth of households led by someone 65 or older
was 10 times larger than the median net worth of households led by someone 35
or younger. As of 2011, the median net worth of households led by someone 65 or
older is 47 times larger than the median net worth of households led by someone
35 or younger. Overall about 46.2 million Americans live below the official
poverty line in 2011, the highest number in more than half a century. This is
troubling given the government’s poverty threshold, set at an annual income of
$23,021 for a family of four.

The
Census data showed that median household income, adjusted for inflation, fell
by 1.5 percent from the previous year. The figure was 8.1 percent lower than in
2007 and 8.9 percent lower than its peak in 1999. The income of the typical US
family in 2011 fell for the fourth straight year and sank to levels last seen
in 1995.

Some
would ask how this is connected with the current administration. First, the
wage-cutting initiated by the Obama administration, which imposed an
across-the-board 50 percent cut in the wages of newly hired workers as part of
its 2009 bailout of General Motors and Chrysler, was a significant reason for
the additional reduction in household income due to declining wages. Even with
the aforementioned, the Obama administration has stated openly that the poverty
rate remained unchanged from 2010 to hail the report as a vindication of its
policies.

Given
the new round of quantitative easing (QE3), it is clear that the Obama
administration’s policy focus has been and remains to protect and increase the
wealth of the US corporate elite at the expense of the majority of the
population. There was no job growth from the first rounds of QE and another
round just means banks will get more money while Wall Street suffers. The
Administration states that GOP trickledown economics doesn’t work, yet implements
QE which is trickledown economics.

The
Census report notes the failure not just of one administration or any political
party, but rather how politics is design to serve big corporations. Regardless
who wins, one can expect the same - mass unemployment, wage-cutting, poverty
and social inequality for most Americans, especially minorities.

More regulation only helps large companies stay large. Corporate lobbying ensures that those with the best legal team (e.g. big biz) will win every time. IMO, deregulation AND eliminating Too Big To Fail is crucial for ensuring all colors and creeds have a chance to compete and prosper against the big boys...too bad our political environment prevents it.

More regulation only helps large companies stay large. Corporate lobbying ensures that those with the best legal team (e.g. big biz) will win every time. IMO, deregulation AND eliminating Too Big To Fail is crucial for ensuring all colors and creeds have a chance to compete and prosper against the big boys...too bad our political environment prevents it.